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Dental, DH Students at Asian American Health Expo

Ann Arbor, MI — May 20, 2015 — Three students from the University of Michigan School of Dentistry talked to members of the Asian American community and presented important information about oral health and systemic health during a recent Asian American Health Expo at Henry Ford Hospital in West Bloomfield, Michigan.

Dental students John Le and Anqi Hu and dental hygiene student Peter Liang talked to more than 100 people at the West Bloomfield event.

“As representatives of the School of Dentistry, we provided visitors with information about important associations between oral and systemic health,” Le said. “We talked to each, some in great detail, and answered questions regarding the link between diabetes and gum disease, oral hygiene education and oral cancer awareness.”

Le said many questions were raised about the association between diabetes and gum disease as well as taking antibiotics prior to certain dental procedures.

“There seemed to be concern among some that if they have a prosthetic joint or cardiac valve replacement in the body that they would then need to take antibiotics before each dental appointment, even for something as simple as teeth cleaning,” Le said. “So we talked to them about the current recommendations for dental procedures from the American Dental Association, the American Heart Association and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.”

The goal of the expo was to raise awareness about wellness and health living programs and also encourage people to eat healthy and get involved in daily exercise. Free cholesterol, A1C and hepatitis B screening were also offered by the hospital’s lab.

The event was sponsored by the Asian Center of Southeast Michigan. The center’s executive director, Dr. Janilla Lee, invited the dental and dental hygiene students to the spring expo following a U-M Diabetes Health Fair last fall.